Agilent U1051A. Acqiris TC890 Time-to-Digital Converter. 6 ch, 50 ps resolution

Transcription

1 Agilent U1051A Acqiris TC890 Time-to-Digital Converter 6 ch, 50 ps resolution

2 2 Main Features 6-channel multistop time-to-digital converter (TDC) with multistart acquisition mode 50 ps timing resolution Ideal for measurement in time-of-flight applications including mass spectrometry and LIDAR and for various pulse-timing measurements Large internal memory buffer, with up to 4 million events Low jitter (< 3 ps rms) stable (±2 ppm) internal clock source External 10 MHz reference input FPGA-based data processing unit Fast DMA readout mode for increased data throughput Data streaming mode allows continuous acquisition and readout Built-in self test and status monitoring Low power consumption (< 25 W)

3 Start 1 First Acquisition Start 2 Second Acquisition Common Start Channel 1 Stop1 Stop2 Stop3 Stop1 Stop2 t1 t2 t3 t1 t2 Channel 2 Stop1 Stop2 Stop1 t1 t2 t1 Channel 6 Figure 1. Multiacquisition, 6 channels, common start, multistop Exceptional Performance for Precise Timing- Measurement Applications The Agilent Acqiris U1051A (TC890) features six independent stopwatches for precise timing measurements from a common start event to multiple stop events at a high resolution. The U1051A is ideal for time measurement applications including LIDAR for 3D mapping and navigation, fluorescence lifetime spectrometry and ion counting in time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOFMS). Many pulse timing measurements, such as period, frequency and time interval analysis (TIA), also benefit from the new TDC s precise measurement technology. The U1051A CompactPCI module records multiple events or hits on each of its six input channels, with a timing resolution of 50 ps and a mean dead time between sequential pulses on the same input (double pulse resolution) of less than 15 ns. Running at full speed, the U1051A offers a massive 25 million events-per-second data-throughput rate. The U1051A enables event counting or histogram creation for easy data and spectra comparison. Six of the seven identical input channels are independent stop inputs and the seventh is the common start. The module operates in a multistart, multistop acquisition mode with the timing information of stop events on all independent channels encoded relative to the most recent start event on the common channel. In standard mode, the recording range is up to 10 ms. If one channel can be dedicated to a fiducial signal, the 10 ms recording time can be extended to a much wider range. The large internal buffer allows the recording of up to four million stopevents per module. On-Board Timing Calculation with Fast Data Readout The timing information of the start and hit events on all channel inputs is obtained by combining a coarse-grain (5 ns) wide-range (21 bit) real-time counter with a much finer-grained interpolated result coming from the analysis of a ramp signal started by the event. Each channel consists of a programmable comparator, an XOR gate used to select the active slope, a stable signal generator, and an analog-to-digital converter (ADC). Once digitized, the data are fed to a Xilinx Virtex-2 Pro FPGAbased data processing unit for processing, storage, and readout. Data readout is achieved with a fast direct memory access (DMA) mode at up to 100 MB/s. Each channel is processed to determine the time of each detected event, start and stop. The final relative time value is obtained by subtracting the start time from each stop time. An additional auxiliary input for a common veto signal can be used to enable/disable all start and stop detection, as desired. 3

4 Self Calibration To achieve the desired precision on all of the input channels, the U1051A time-to-digital converter has a powerful self calibration routine. This self calibration is done simply through a software command available in the driver, so no extra programming is needed. Easy Integration Agilent Acqiris Time-to-Digital converters are supplied with software drivers for Windows and application code examples for MATLAB, C/C++ and LabVIEW. These code examples provide card set up and basic acquisi tion functionality, and are easily modified, so that the card can quickly be integrated into a measurement system. The flexibility of the driver means that, with minimum software adjustments, any Acqiris TDC can be swapped out, replaced, and upgraded over time, with the latest highresolution Acqiris Time-to-Digital converter. Atlas Experiment, courtesy of CERN 4

5 High-Resolution Multistop Time-to-Digital Converter Model TC890, 6 channel, 50 ps resolution Signal input Connectors 50 Ω K-lock Lemo QLA 00 NIM/CAMAC Standard CD/N Ω K-Lock (LEMO) type Impedance 50 Ω ±1% Threshold Programmable from -1.5 V to +1.5 V, in mv steps (12-bit) Sensitivity 100 mv over threshold for 350 ps (minimum pulse to trigger) Hysteresis 15 mv Channels One common start Six inputs stop Protection Clamping diodes at ±2.5 V, 0.5 W max into 50 Ω Propagation delay skew tpd = 15 ps for 10 mv to 100 mv, tpd = 40 ps for 100 mv to 2 V VSWR (typ.) < 1.5 from DC to 1 GHz VETO IN 50 Ω input with programmable threshold REF IN 50 Ω input for external high-precision 10 MHz source 0 to 3 V pkpk Threshold at 1.5 V Time resolution and range Time resolution 50 ps Time range Up to ms in standard operation. Can be extended to a much wider range. Double pulse resolution < 15 ns Integral nonlinearity ±50 ps Differential nonlinearity ±30 ps Post-start dead time 10 ns Clock accuracy Better than ±2 ppm Clock jitter < 3 ps rms Internal reference frequency 10 MHz Acquisition and readout Acquisition modes Multistart - Multistop DMA 100 MB/s General Host computer and operating system: PC compatible (x86) systems running Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows 2003 Server, Windows 2000 or National Instruments LabVIEW RT. For more information on which specific processors and operating system versions are supported, please contact us. Transfer speed: High-speed PCI bus transfers data at sustained rates to host computer: Up to 100 Mbytes/s for 32-bit/33 MHz operation Power consumption (typical) < 25 W Current requirements (typical) 12 V 0.10 A 5 V 4.1 A 3.3 V 0.80 A -12 V 0.05 A Warranty 1 year Environmental and physical Operating temperature 0 to 40 C Required airflow > 2 m/s in situ Relative humidity 5 to 95% (non-condensing) Safety Complies with EN EMC immunity Complies with EN Industrial Environment (TBC) EMC emissions Complies with EN Class A for radiated emissions (TBC) Dimensions 6U CompactPCI standard (PXI compliant) 233 mm x 160 mm x 20 mm Front panel complies with IEEE Certification and Compliance 5

6 Contacts Acqiris Product Information USA (800) Asia-Pacific Europe 41 (22) Additional Agilent Contact Information Americas Canada (877) Latin America (305) United States (800) Asia Pacific Australia China Hong Kong India Japan 0120 (421) 345 Korea Malaysia Singapore Taiwan Thailand Europe & Middle East Austria Belgium 32 (0) Denmark Finland 358 (0) France * *0.125 /minute Germany Ireland Israel /544 Italy Netherlands 31 (0) Spain 34 (91) Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom 44 (0) Other European Countries: Revised: March 27, 2008 Ordering Information Model U1051A U1051A-UK6 Acessories U1092A-CB7 U1092A-CB8 U1092A-CB9 Description Six-channel high-resolution multistart, multistop cpci time-to-digital converter, Acqiris TC890 Calibration certificate BNC to Lemo, 1m cable BNC to Lemo, 2m cable Lemo to BNC adapter For more information on Agilent Technologies products, applications or services, please contact your local Agilent office. The complete list is available at: Windows is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation. Agilent Technologies, Inc. 2007, 2008 Printed in USA, November 4, EN For more information on the Acqiris product line, sales or services, see our website at: